Lahore Cantonment Board (LCB) is ready for the local bodies elections awaiting green signal from the Federal Government in this regard. This was stated by the Station Commander, Lahore, Brigadier Ghulam Farooq while speaking at a news conference here on Tuesday to highlight the achievements of the development works carried out in the cantonment.
Flanked by the chief executive officer Shabbir Baloch, the Station Commander said the board has completed all the necessary spadework in connection with the local bodies elections such deliminations and updating voter's lists.
"We are ready for the elections but the permission has to be given by the Federal Government" he said in response to a question.
The last local bodies elections in the cantonment were held in 1992. He said there were 44 Cantonment Boards throughout the country and local bodies elections in these areas will be held only on permission by the Federal Government.
Speaking about the execution of its development works in various sectors, Brigadier Farooq said the LCB during the last three years carpetted all major roads including Sarfraz Rafique, Tufail, Sarwar, Azix Bhatti and Abdul Rehman roads.
Soldium lights were also installed on the major roads with underground wiring. To provide clean drinking water for a population of 750,000 living within the jurisdiction of Lahore Cantonment and Walton Cantonment Boards and to meet the shortage of water, new tube-wells have been installed in the effected areas with additional laying of water supply lines.
According to Brigadier Farooq, the budget for the fiscal year 2005-06 has been estimated at Rs 750 million out of which Rs 151.973 million are to be spent on various schemes such as construct ion of gynae/paeditric wards in Cantonment General Hospital, sewerage, water supply, parks, construction of footpaths and other miscellaneous public facilities improvement.
"We have been able to tackle major issues through planning and strategy and development of infrastructure," said the Station Commander.
He added that the entire sanitation system has been privatised to produce better results. To overcome power supply problems, a new grid station will be construction within the current fiscal year.
To streamline the traffic system, he said, all the traffic lights within the jurisdiction of LCB will be synchronxscad. He said the sewerage lines are being laid in all the cantonment in a phased process. Eighty percent of the Walton Board area now have proper sewerage lines.
Brigadier Farooq said the unplanned housing societies have been warned to regularise themselves and these include Eden Housing and Air View.
He said the LCB was generating funds through its own resources and the revenue was coming through various taxes and fees.